The Davies brothers of

Bersham Bersham (; standardised: ) is a village in Wrexham County Borough, Wales, that lies next to the River Clywedog, and is in the community of Esclusham. Bersham was historically a major industrial centre of the area, but despite this the vill ...

, near

Wrexham Wrexham ( ; ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city in the North East Wales, north-east of Wales. It lies between the Cambrian Mountains, Welsh mountains and the lower River Dee, Wales, Dee Valley, near the England–Wales border, borde ...

in north

Wales Wales ( ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by the Irish Sea to the north and west, England to the England–Wales border, east, the Bristol Channel to the south, and the Celtic ...

, were a family of

smith Smith may refer to: People and fictional characters * Metalsmith, or simply smith, a craftsman fashioning tools or works of art out of various metals * Smith (given name) * Smith (surname), a family name originating in England ** List of people ...

s active in the 18th century. They were particularly known for their high-quality work in

wrought iron Wrought iron is an iron alloy with a very low carbon content (less than 0.05%) in contrast to that of cast iron (2.1% to 4.5%), or 0.25 for low carbon "mild" steel. Wrought iron is manufactured by heating and melting high carbon cast iron in an ...

, of which several examples still survive in country homes and churchyards around the England-Wales border.

Biography

The family consisted of Hugh or Huw Davies (d. 1702) and his sons Robert (1675–1748) and John (1682–1755), who would both go on to be highly regarded smiths; there were also another two sons, Huw and Thomas, and six daughters, Anne, Magdalen, Jane, Sarah, Elinor, and Margaret.Davies family of Bersham
Welsh Biography Online They worked at the Croes Foel forge in

, near Wrexham. Robert – generally considered the most talented of the family – may have studied under the great

French French may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France ** French people, a nation and ethnic group ** French cuisine, cooking traditions and practices Arts and media * The French (band), ...

wrought iron smith

Jean Tijou Jean Tijou () was a French Huguenot ironworker. He is known solely through his work in England, where he worked on several of the key English Baroque buildings. Very little is known of his biography. He arrived in England in c. 1689 and enjoyed ...

.Hilling, J. ''The historic architecture of Wales: an introduction'', University of Wales Press, 1976, p.125. The brothers were also have said to have worked with Robert Bakewell of Derby. The will of Hugh Sr., dated 13 June 1702 and proved at

St Asaph St Asaph (; "church on the Elwy") is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and community (Wales), community on the River Elwy in Denbighshire, Wales. At the 2021 United Kingdom census, 2021 census the community had a population ...

in 1703, left a

messuage In law, conveyancing is the transfer of legal title of real property from one person to another, or the granting of an encumbrance such as a mortgage or a lien. A typical conveyancing transaction has two major phases: the exchange of contracts ...

in Bersham to his wife Eleanor and then to his son Robert along with £7 10s., "for which he is to instruct my son Thomas in the trade and science of a smith which he the said Robert now professeth".Myddleton, W. M. ''Chirk Castle Accounts, 1666–1753'', Manchester UP, 1931, p.144 Several examples of work known to be by Robert and John survive, as well as a handful of items attributed to their father. Some of these are of exceptionally high quality; a screen and gates known as the "White Gates", at Leeswood Hall,

Flintshire Flintshire () is a county in the north-east of Wales. It borders the Irish Sea to the north, the Dee Estuary to the north-east, the English county of Cheshire to the east, Wrexham County Borough to the south, and Denbighshire to the west. ...

, has been described as one of the finest of its type in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

, and has been attributed to the Davies brothers on the basis of distinctive fretwork patterns shared with other of their designs.Ayrton & Silcock, ''Wrought Iron and Its Decorative Use'', Courier Dover Publications, 2003, p.112. . The Leeswood gates have also been suggested as the work of Bakewell.

Nikolaus Pevsner Sir Nikolaus Bernhard Leon Pevsner (30 January 1902 – 18 August 1983) was a German-British art historian and architectural historian best known for his monumental 46-volume series of county-by-county guides, ''The Buildings of England'' (195 ...

described the Davies brothers' work as "miraculous".Pevsner, N. & Nairn, I. ''Surrey: v.21 of the Buildings of England'', Penguin Books, 1962, p.363

Works by the Davies family

The following are linked to the Davies brothers by documentary evidence: *Gates at

Chirk Castle Chirk Castle () is a Grade I listed castle located in Chirk, Wrexham County Borough, Wales, from Chirk railway station, now owned and run by the National Trust. History The castle was built in 1295 by Roger Mortimer de Chirk, uncle of Roge ...

(1719) *

St Giles' Church, Wrexham St Giles' Parish Church () is the parish church of Wrexham, Wales. The church is recognised as one of the finest examples of ecclesiastical architecture in Wales and is a Grade I listed building, described by Sir Simon Jenkins as 'the glory of th ...

, gates (1720) by Robert Davies, and

chancel In church architecture, the chancel is the space around the altar, including the Choir (architecture), choir and the sanctuary (sometimes called the presbytery), at the liturgical east end of a traditional Christian church building. It may termi ...

gates and choir rail attributed to Hugh Davies (late seventeenth century)Ayrton & Silcock, p.62 *Gates of St Peter's Church, Ruthin (1727) *Gate of

Oswestry Oswestry ( ; ) is a market town, civil parish and historic railway town in Shropshire, England, close to the England–Wales border, Welsh border. It is at the junction of the A5 road (Great Britain), A5, A483 road, A483 and A495 road, A495 ro ...

Parish Church (1738) *Gates of Berwick House, near

Shrewsbury Shrewsbury ( , ) is a market town and civil parish in Shropshire (district), Shropshire, England. It is sited on the River Severn, northwest of Wolverhampton, west of Telford, southeast of Wrexham and north of Hereford. At the 2021 United ...

(in place by 1760) by Robert Davies, now at Newnham Paddox,

Monks Kirby Monks Kirby is a village and civil parishes in England, civil parish in north-eastern Warwickshire, England. The population of the parish is 445. Monks Kirby is located around one mile east of the Fosse Way, around 8 miles north-west of Rugby, ...

, Warwickshire

Works attributed to Davies family

*Gates formerly at Stansty Park, now at

Erddig Hall Erddig () is a country house and estate in the community of Marchwiel, approximately south of Wrexham, Wales. It is centred on a country house which dates principally from between 1684 and 1687, when the central block was built by Joshua Edisbu ...

. Robert Davies is known to have made gates for Erddig, but they were removed during a subsequent remodelling of the park by

William Emes William Emes (1729 or 1730–13 March 1803) was an English landscape gardener. Biography Details of his early life are not known but in 1756 he was appointed head gardener to Sir Nathaniel Curzon at Kedleston Hall, Derbyshire. He left this post ...

.Erddig
, COFLEIN *The White Gates and Black Gates, Leeswood HallThe White Gates are still in-situ, but the Black Gates were removed by

Cadw (, a Welsh verbal noun meaning "keeping/preserving") is the historic environment service of the Welsh Government and part of the Tourism and Culture group. works to protect the historic buildings and structures, the landscapes and heritage ...

in 1986 and set up near the entrance to the mansion of Tower, near

Nercwys Nercwys is a rural village and community in Flintshire, Wales, which is surrounded by open countryside. The community population taken at the 2011 census was 585. The older, anglicised spelling of ''Nerquis'' can sometimes be found. It has a sm ...

. The two sets of gates were locally known as "Heaven and Hell" *The Golden Gates, Eaton Hall,

Cheshire Cheshire ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in North West England. It is bordered by Merseyside to the north-west, Greater Manchester to the north-east, Derbyshire to the east, Staffordshire to the south-east, and Shrop ...

*Gates of

St Mary's Church, Eccleston St Mary's Church is in the village of Eccleston, Cheshire, Eccleston, Cheshire, England, on the estate of the Duke of Westminster south of Chester. The church is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade I Lis ...

, from now-demolished Emral Hall near Wrexham *Gates at Gwysaney Hall, near Sychdyn *Gates now at

Cholmondeley Castle Cholmondeley Castle is a English country house, country house in the civil parish of Cholmondeley, Cheshire, Cholmondeley, Cheshire, England. Together with its adjacent formal gardens, it is surrounded by parkland. The site of the house has be ...

*Gates of

Hawkstone Hall Hawkstone Hall is a early 18th-century country mansion near Hodnet and Weston-under-Redcastle, Shropshire, England which was more recently occupied as the pastoral centre of a religious organisation for many years. It is a Grade I listed buildin ...

Shropshire Shropshire (; abbreviated SalopAlso used officially as the name of the county from 1974–1980. The demonym for inhabitants of the county "Salopian" derives from this name.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the West M ...

*Gates and railings at the now-demolished Carden Hall; the gates have now been removedMatthews, K
Carden Hall and other parkland buildings
, accessed 15-09-10 *The main gates of

St Oswald's Church, Malpas St Oswald's Church stands on the highest point in the market town of Malpas, Cheshire, England, on or near the site of a Norman motte and bailey castle. The church is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade ...

were formerly attributed to the brothers, but are now considered to be of a later date.Ayrton & Silcock, pp.115–117 A smaller gate in the churchyard is however thought to be the work of their father Hugh.Ayrton & Silcock, p.64

Gallery

Image:Golden Gates at Eaton Hall Cheshire.JPG, The "Golden Gates", Eaton Hall Image:Erddig Hall gates - scan01.png, Gates of Erddig, originally at Stansty Park Image:Church Gates, St Giles Parish Church, Wrexham - geograph.org.uk - 653013.jpg, Robert Davies' gates for St Giles, Wrexham Image:Gates of St Mary the Virgin Parish Church - geograph.org.uk - 1595737.jpg, The former gates of Emral Hall, now located at St Mary, Eccleston, Cheshire

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Davies Brothers Of Wrexham Welsh artists British blacksmiths Welsh metalsmiths History of Wrexham County Borough Organisations based in Wrexham County Borough